Australia winces at footage of child falling between train and platform

 

People look down between a train and platform, as a boy fell through train gap, in Sydney, Australia February 19, 2019, in this video grab obtained by Reuters July 2, 2019. SYDNEY TRAINS/via REUTERS

 

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia released hair-raising security images on Tuesday of a child falling between a train station platform and a train, as a reminder to parents to stay vigilant during the busy school holidays.

 

A train stops at a Sydney station, and a woman pushes a stroller toward the open doors, in the closed-circuit television pictures. As she prepares to lift the stroller onto the train, the child walking beside her plunges into the gap between the woman and the train.

 

The woman then raises her arm to draw the attention of station staff, while passersby pull the apparently unharmed child back onto the platform.

 

“A simple thing such as holding your child’s hand when moving around stations and boarding a train can help prevent them from being seriously injured or worse,” Andrew Constance, the transport minister of New South Wales, said in a statement.

 

The woman’s face was blurred in the footage and a government spokesman said she could not immediately be reached for comment.

 

The clip was widely shared on social media, with a post by Nine Entertainment Co Holdings Ltd’s drawing 1,600 comments and 1,100 “shares”.

 

In another clip released by the government, a child falls face first after tripping in the gap between train and station while disembarking.

 

A third shows a young person running down the station stairs, only to trip and fall down several steps before hitting a handrail post.

 

More than half of train station accidents on the 178-station Sydney Trains network take place at the three busiest stations in the city’s central business district, Chief Executive Howard Collins said.

 

“The most important message I’d like to share with parents is please don’t rush around stations or platforms,” he added.

 

In 2010, a 15-month-old boy escaped with only minor cuts and bruises when an approaching train hit his stroller, which had rolled over the edge of the platform.

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-07-02

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1st world train system a totall mess. Who remembers the red rattler and then the tangara that was an always broken down. Constant cancelation and 45 minutes between trains.
Thailand was light years ahead

Thank god the little guy is ok

That gap seems quite wide.

14 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

“A simple thing such as holding your child’s hand

Something as  kid I always  had to do but is  now see as "bad" it  appears a  bit like  kids walking  near the road on pavements, never done when i was  young, adult on the outside, now  the little  buggers run round shops mauling everything, need a  bloody good  whack imo. Look but  dont touch when I was a  kid.

Wait for  the "you condone beating kids" brigade

1 hour ago, Tug said:

Thank god the little guy is ok

The same god that let him fall down there?

No excuse for not having barriers.

14 minutes ago, DoctorG said:

That gap seems quite wide.

Yes. On the London Underground a warning message of "please mind the gap" is always broadcast when a train arrives at the platform. I wonder if such a warning system was installed here.

48 minutes ago, Burma Bill said:

Yes. On the London Underground a warning message of "please mind the gap" is always broadcast when a train arrives at the platform. I wonder if such a warning system was installed here.

2016: Londoners aren't minding the gap - 400% more people have been falling between the platform and the train in the last 10 years. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/12111303/mind-the-gap-between-the-train-and-the-platform.html

2018: Now being fitted with platform screen doors where there is no gap to mind.

https://londonist.com/london/transport/platform-screen-safety-doors-piccadilly-line-new-trains

 

Curved platform and straight sided train gives a nice big gap in the middle.

Wonder what wonderful suggestions could be made to overcome the problem.

A. Parents keep your attention on the kids.

B. ?

C. ?

D. ?

You fill in the rest.

 

1 hour ago, newnative said:

No excuse for not having barriers.

or wrapping everyone in cotton wool

8 minutes ago, Chazar said:

or wrapping everyone in cotton wool

Yep. Play football in flipflops then sue the FA because you broke your big toe. ????????

Poor kid, great that he was unharmed, kudos to the guy who saved the kid, great work. The mother seemed to have her hands full and that gap at Sydenham station is way too large.

 

1 hour ago, Burma Bill said:

Yes. On the London Underground a warning message of "please mind the gap" is always broadcast when a train arrives at the platform. I wonder if such a warning system was installed here.

You think that would have stopped this boy from falling down?

A simple thing such as holding your child’s hand when moving around stations and boarding a train can help prevent them from being seriously injured or worse,” Andrew Constance, the transport minister of New South Wales, said in a statement

 

What a stupid statement. In a 1st world country one would expect an organisation to ensure the safety of all passengers. It can’t be difficult to eliminate the risk. This has happened before so there is no excuse.

1 hour ago, overherebc said:

Yep. Play football in flipflops then sue the FA because you broke your big toe. ????????

Theyll have to let the air  out  of the  ball, you could stub your toe  on it and theyll need  that special  rubber  matting on the  floor in case they  fall over and that must be organic and pesticide free as  well as transgender..........not sure Ive covered everything  there? Oh yes and a 4  day safety  course.

1 minute ago, Chazar said:

Theyll have to let the air  out  of the  ball, you could stub your toe  on it and theyll need  that special  rubber  matting on the  floor in case they  fall over and that must be organic and pesticide free as  well as transgender..........not sure Ive covered everything  there? Oh yes and a 4  day safety  course.

No jumping up unless you have completed 'working at heights' course.

Nio other adults there to offer a kind hand to help her? If this was possible and no one did I'm nortsurproised as an Aussie I see my countrymen so self obsessed and selfish as to not give a damn about anyone else. Hope the poor kid and mum are okay!

20 minutes ago, Tropposurfer said:

Nio other adults there to offer a kind hand to help her? If this was possible and no one did I'm nortsurproised as an Aussie I see my countrymen so self obsessed and selfish as to not give a damn about anyone else. Hope the poor kid and mum are okay!

IF that were true [the video suggests otherwise], it wouldn't just be Australia. 

Yes. On the London Underground a warning message of "please mind the gap" is always broadcast when a train arrives at the platform. I wonder if such a warning system was installed here.

I'm sure, "Please mind the gap." would have alerted the kid to being careful... No, seriously, sometimes I have the impression that parents these days are less concerned about their children. A simple: "Wait there, till I have lifted the stroller onto the train..." could have stopped the child from falling down there. 

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5 hours ago, Chazar said:

Something as  kid I always  had to do but is  now see as "bad" it  appears a  bit like  kids walking  near the road on pavements, never done when i was  young, adult on the outside, now  the little  buggers run round shops mauling everything, need a  bloody good  whack imo. Look but  dont touch when I was a  kid.

Wait for  the "you condone beating kids" brigade

Well it seems like you do condone beating kids when in the cases you describe its the parents who need a whack !!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

2 hours ago, Tropposurfer said:

Nio other adults there to offer a kind hand to help her? If this was possible and no one did I'm nortsurproised as an Aussie I see my countrymen so self obsessed and selfish as to not give a damn about anyone else. Hope the poor kid and mum are okay!

The world has become so PC that everyone has become scared to communicated.... Most of the people who would otherwise be prepared to help perhaps don't because they fear a negative response, especially in the West. 

This is far more relaxed in Thailand, especially where children are concerned, people speak to my son on the BTS etc, in the UK a stranger would be too scared to speak to a kid for fear of a negative repose from a parent calling them a perv or a kiddy fiddler...  The West it seems has may have become too aggressive, the consequence is our isolation in crowds. 

 

I once tried to help a disabled lady who was having difficult getting her wheelchair up a curb...  after asking "Can I give you a hand"... "Please, F£$K off" was the response, so I left her in the road still struggling to get up the curb ! (I've digressed). 

 

In this case - its difficult for the Mum to hold the kids hand and push the push chair - the kid is about as clumsy as my Son is... he'd do something like that not looking where he's going !!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

5 hours ago, Srikcir said:

2016: Londoners aren't minding the gap - 400% more people have been falling between the platform and the train in the last 10 years. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/12111303/mind-the-gap-between-the-train-and-the-platform.html

2018: Now being fitted with platform screen doors where there is no gap to mind.

https://londonist.com/london/transport/platform-screen-safety-doors-piccadilly-line-new-trains

 

There's still a gap - it's on the other side of the door.

On 7/2/2019 at 6:22 PM, madmen said:

1st world train system a totall mess. Who remembers the red rattler and then the tangara that was an always broken down. Constant cancelation and 45 minutes between trains.
Thailand was light years ahead

Thailand still the same. New trains and double track on its way but it doesn't mean there'll be any improvement.

On 7/3/2019 at 12:33 PM, Tropposurfer said:

Nio other adults there to offer a kind hand to help her? If this was possible and no one did I'm nortsurproised as an Aussie I see my countrymen so self obsessed and selfish as to not give a damn about anyone else. Hope the poor kid and mum are okay!

But we're they all Aussies

22 hours ago, Ozman52 said:

There's still a gap - it's on the other side of the door.

Singapore had  screens on the platforms 40 years ago shielding the passengers from the train ,opened when the train stopped. No gap.

8 minutes ago, Percy P said:

Singapore had  screens on the platforms 40 years ago shielding the passengers from the train ,opened when the train stopped. No gap.

The screens are there to stop people falling onto the tracks when platforms are crowded. Unless you grease the train so it fits like a finger up a bum, or have extendable sections that move after the train stops, there will have to be gap.